At 5 & Diamond, Ryan Skeen Steps Aside for David Santos

Back in March, when a front-of-the-house upheaval brought the matter of Ryan Skeen’s ownership stake in 5 & Diamond into question, Skeen told us he and the restaurant’s owners were “working on a partnership.” The month after that, he denied rumors that he was on his way out at the restaurant, and told us, “I’m not leaving in any way, shape, or form” before going on to introduce his new chef de cuisine David Santos. Now Fork in the Road, in an addendum to the Voice’s Skeen-obsessed review of the restaurant, clarifies that Skeen is (in his words) “stepping back from the restaurant to allow David to take the reigns [sic] and allow his new menu to work itself out.”

It’s not exactly a surprise given that Santos is the one responsible for the newly launched Portuguese brunch. The new executive chef says: “I specifically took the role as chef de cuisine with the understanding that Skeen would step aside and I would take over as executive chef which is expected to officially take place by July first. This process has already started and has been the case the last 2 months basically.” Headhunters, it looks like Ryan Skeen is once again a free agent.